Founded by bourgeois Amsterdam students, Ajax was turned into the powerhouse of Dutch football between the world wars by Englishman Jack Reynolds, who managed the club for 25 years. In 1946, he gave a first game to Rinus Michels, who would himself become Ajax's coach in 1965 and lay the foundation for the "Golden Ajax" teams of the early 1970s. Thereafter, Ajax cycled through achievement and failure, as successive generations of homegrown stars—from Johann Cruyff and Johann Neeskens, to Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard, to the De Boer brothers and Dennis Bergkamp—were lured abroad.

Legend of the Past:
Sjaak Swart was the ultimate Mister Ajax, making a club record 473 competitive appearances between 1956 and 1973. The right winger's 175 goals place him third in Ajax's all-time goal scorers, list behind Piet van Reenen (273 )and Johan Cryuff (205).